Barcelona won the La Liga title after a dominating 4-2 win against rivals Espanyol at their stadium which saw some drama unfold at the end.
It was a high-stakes game from the beginning, with Barcelona fighting for the title and Espanyol for survival from relegation. Both are historic Catalan derby rivals as well.
Barca completely dominated the game right from the start. Robert Lewandowski scored a brace and talented youngster Alejandro Balde grabbed a goal in the first half. Defender Jules Kounde completed the scoring for the away side in the second half. Espanyol players Javi Puado and Joselu both scored but failed to prevent a 4-2 defeat.
Barcelona win the La Liga
The victory at their rival’s stadium took them 14 points clear of second-placed Real Madrid. This led to Barcelona clinching the title with four games left.
The La Liga title win is their 27th overall in history and their first since last winning in the 2018-19 campaign. The Blaugrana struggled in the last three seasons, with many issues like their financial situation and Lionel Messi’s departure affecting them.
LA LIGA CHAMP🏆ONS! pic.twitter.com/enrozFf9gs
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) May 14, 2023
But, thanks to some clever summer additions and the development of some incredibly gifted youngsters, Barcelona has developed into a good squad under former legendary midfielder Xavi Hernandez.
Both Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid struggling this season and fell behind. Barcelona has been the best team in La Liga by far and has only been defeated three times. They won 27 games and have only conceded 13 goals in the league. It was also their first league title in the 21st century without the legendary Lionel Messi.
Espanyol fans chase the champions
Barcelona players were happy to win the title and couldn’t resist celebrating on their rival’s pitch itself. Even the substitutes, coaches, and staff joined in. They formed a huge circle in the middle of the RCDE stadium and were singing.
Barcelona won La Liga tonight and the players were celebrating in the centre circle… until Espanyol fans snapped and chased them off the pitch 🇪🇸👊 pic.twitter.com/o9UF6z65Yy
— Football Fights (@footbalIfights) May 14, 2023
Espanyol fans were enraged at the defeat to their rivals which could see them potentially being relegated. So when they saw their rivals celebrating on the pitch, they couldn’t control themselves. The angry fans ran onto the pitch to attack the players. Luckily, the players managed to get to safety in the tunnel. Riot police were also on-site to prevent any misgivings to take place.
According to Sportsbible, Xavi had instructed his players not to celebrate on the pitch, but they had refused the order. He later said the emotions were too much for the players and that he understands it.
Espanyol had also banned any away fans to attend the game to prevent any celebrations.
The Barca players continued to celebrate the whole night in the dressing room and on the bus. The fans also celebrated the win in the streets.
They will lift the trophy next game when captain Sergio Busquets lifts it in Camp Nou in front of their fans against Real Sociedad on Saturday.
An open-top bus parade with the women’s team that won the Femeni league is also scheduled.
